The present invention relates generally to processing a user request and more specifically to monitoring time utilized for processing and responding to such request.
As the size of software applications and other computer processing systems continue to expand, there is an ever-increasing level of complexity involved not only in using the product, but also learning to use the product. It is not uncommon in these systems for users to encounter problems or have issues related to the product.
A common technique for dealing with user issues is the receipt of user inquiries. These inquires may be received from a variety of sources, such as from a user submitting an electronic message using a customer-assistance web site. Through an interactive process using a browser or other application, the user may type in a user request and designate the request for a particular product. The request may be automatically designated based on the web site from which the request is submitted or the user may use pull down menus or other features to designate the corresponding product.
In existing systems, the user request is provided to a support team. In the example of an electronic message, the inquiry may be converted to an electronic mail message and electronically mailed to one or more persons. The person then attempts to reply to the inquiry as quickly as possible. Often times, the user may simply utilizes a FIFO (first in first out) approach and respond to the inquiries in the order they are received.
This process is relatively automated but problems can arise when dealing with various assistants. The current system simply provides these messages and it is the responsibility of the recipient to process and manage the requests. In dealing with customer concerns, it is a common practice to set guidelines for when a response should be provided. For example, a time may be established that any inquiry should be handled in forty eight (48) hours or less.
The timing of the response to the user inquiry can be greatly affected by a large number of factors. Common among them, the availability of the assistant is a common issue. For example, the assistant may be out of the office for a period of time for different reasons and these user concerns may be idly queued without system oversight. Therefore, while the assistant may be on vacation or at a training program, the recommended response time expires without a response being provided.
Another common concern is the work load of the assistant. As the number of inquiries increase, the assistant may be unable to effectively address the new concerns in a timely manner. Once again, in the existing systems, these user concerns are automatically processed and queued up for the assistants. Therefore, even though the assistant may be diligently attending to existing user concerns, the recommended response time period may still not be met.
The existing system can be problematic because the automated functionality of receiving the user inquiries and thereby queuing these inquiries with an external response time factor associated therewith. The automated process does not include the time features and also does not account for the type of the user request. Rather, all requests are similarly processed, leading to problems if there are issues associated with availability of the assistant.
The current system also lacks any monitoring or feedback mechanism. As noted, this system merely processes the request and forwards the request to one or more queues. The system does not have the ability to determine if and when an inquiry is addressed. Therefore, it is possible for an inquiry to be overlooked and a user inquiry to never be addressed.
Issues relating to responses to customers inquiries are further magnified when dealing with large and complex processing systems. In multi-level processing environments having various levels of applications and functionalities, there may be a larger number of user inquiries. And with further systems having specialized features, problems can also arise regarding the assistant being the proper person to address the issue. Therefore, the current system processes the inquires to the assistants, but does not monitor timeliness of responses within external mandated guidelines.